Just Another OneShot Anthology
by blossomstar16
Summary: anthology. chapter 22. Don't say it. Don't leave me. Just please, no...NaruSaku
1. Heat

She stood sobbing against the tree.

The leaves were a dull green, lacking the luster and life that the surrounding trees had. The air was still, and full of an impossible heat. The air stifled all sounds and movement. The cicadas stirred the leaves, buzzing almost contentedly in the arid air.

Her sobs became dry after several hours in the sun. She was dehydrated and sunburned; even worse, she was heart broken.

Her short hair stuck to her neck from sweat and brushed against her cheeks as she cried into her knees.

The thing she had feared for months had finally happened, he broke up with her. _I should have broken up with him earlier! _She thought angrily, her wide green eyes narrowed with fury.

He had loved once, but like many _arrogant _men, he grew bored once the chase had them settled in an apartment with matching furniture, and a content and happy, _monotonous _relationship.

Once there had been flowers, candy, and soft words of affection. He would nuzzle into her shoulder and exclaim his love with his soft, smooth voice. His black hair would gently sweep her cheek and she would marvel at its natural softness.

He had often just _held _her. Nothing more, just hold her close until both of their worries would ease away into each other's warmth.

Then he became apathetic, never saying anything, occasionally glaring sullenly in her general direction when he thought she wasn't looking.

Then he wouldn't kiss her anymore.

No touches or warm gestures.

_He hated me. _She thought sadly to herself, _but he still didn't want to hurt me. WHY, WHY!! Couldn't he have let me go once he was bored, it would've been easier, less painful_…..

She stood up shakily, the hours of being motionless except for the physical stress of crying. Her pink hair swept back off of her shoulders, and she slumped pathetically before straightening out and marching unsteadily off to gather her thing and move on….

As she moved into her new apartment, she gazed sadly at a photograph she was storing in a small black photo album.

_Sasuke…my _first_ love…_


	2. Bomb Dropped

The city was a shell of its former self; it was hollow, devoid of the life that once filled it

The city was a shell of its former self; it was hollow, devoid of the life that once filled it. The trees were black and broken, sprawled over war-torn streets.

It was the calm before the storm.

The only sound was my feet pounding the cracked pavement and my labored breathing.

I stopped and listened, I could feel the earth shaking from the approaching tanks, the sky was black and green, and ugly color; I heard a small crackle, and then a loud boom, snapping me into awareness.

Soon the sharp twisted metal would drop from the skies, if I didn't find cover; I would be torn to pieces.

A piece of concrete caught my eye; it jutted out of the Earth, forming a small lean-to.

The shrapnel fell around me as I reached the shelter, and I hoped any one else lost in the maze of ruins would fare as lucky as me. I didn't care for sides; I was a medic helping people in a stupid war. It was practically pointless; land was gained and lost everyday, along with hundreds of men and women only trying to defend their country or way of life.

It was stupid.

As the deadly hail stopped, I scurried onward, hoping to locate the medic tent before the next volley came. I knew a soldier from either side would shoot me if they weren't wounded, they were just too jumpy: no one wanted to die.

I heard wheezing as I turned a corner, I looked and gasped.

In front of me, half covered with a tumbled old wall, was a wounded soldier. Bits of shrapnel stuck out of his exposed side, his leg and arm were a collection of bloody spines, and a trickle of blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. Panicked, I settled to his side.

"Don't worry; I'm a medic, and a damned good one at that. His eyes locked with mine, and for a second, my head spun and my stomach dropped into my knees. Pushing it aside, I placed a rock in his good hand, and pulled out a long syringe. He stared at me questionably.

"For the pain of sticking this giant needle into your bleeding arm." I told him shortly, filling the syringe with some morphine (that stuff rocks out loud). I injected it into his arm, feeling the muscle trying to relax under the pain. I could picture the medicine spreading through him like a cooling breeze, affecting the immediate area, and then spreading outward. His strained expression relaxed.

Now for the fun part.

I began pulling the tiny shards of metal from his skin, quickly applying bandages and pressure once the skin was free of them. His blood loss was minimal, even for all of the bits I had to pull out that were in a vein or artery. He looked at me, trying to catch my eye as I worked.

"What side are you on?" he asked me.

"My side."  
"Which side is that? Konoha or Oto's?"

"Neither, one stole a friend, and one a friend abandoned. I fight for myself and help my self. And others."

He stared at me for a second, and then his eyes widened.

"Sakura-chan?" he asked me softly. I stiffened. No one had called me that since _them_.

My best friends, the idiot and the yarou. **(A/N despite al beliefs, yarou means bastard, teme is just a really degrading way of saying "you")**

I remembered.

"Sasuke-kun?" he nodded slowly. My eyes narrowed, I could feel coldness pouring out of my very core, freezing my heart along with my eyes.

"You bastard. You kuso YAROU!! How dare you leave us all alone? How dare you? WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! THANKS TOUR YOUR LITTLE SOUND FRIENDS, NARUTO'S DEAD, HE'S DEAD DAMMIT!! AND NOW HE'S NEVER COMING BACK AND IT'S YOUR FAULT!!"

He looked a little shocked to say the least, he'd never heard me raise my voice before, and to my dismay, tears had started flowing down my cheek. I handed him some bandages and a small syringe, capped, filled with more pain killer.

"Get out of my sight, I have a sniper rifle, and it would be fun to see what it did at this close of a range. " He looked frozen. I had to get away.

I got up and started walking away, and then I felt a tug on my hand. I looked down, and before I knew it, he had me pressed into a wall. He stared into my eyes, and I could feel the regret and sorrow in them.

"Sakura-chan, please..."

"Don't call me that. No one calls me that, I can't let anyone call me that." Oh great, I was crying again. Well I guess twice in five years isn't that bad.

"I'm so sorry for any pain I have ever caused you or Naruto. You have to understand that, I don't care if you still hate me; I just want you to understand. Maybe someday you could come to trust me even..." I stared at him, silently asking if he was serious. When his face didn't change, I relaxed slightly, and then taking note of our proximity, I started blushing.

Great. First time in seeing him after all this time, and I revert back to my old ways. I bet that in an hour or two I'll be on the floor hollow and used, just like last time.

No he didn't do THAT to me or anything, he just knocked me out after I gave him nothing but love, so he could run off and join Orochimaru's underground.

He gazed deeply into my eyes, again. Jeez, sob story I'm waiting.

But it never came. Instead his lips crashed down on mine, tasting faintly of water and slightly bitter from the ash clogging the air, but oh so soft and warm. He almost seemed tender.

Almost.

That's what always got me, the fact he seemed to care, and then dropped me to my doom.

Or in the past, he dropped me to the mercy of...Shisou. Kami bless her.

He pulled away for a breath, finding my non-reaction a little wanting I suppose. To my utter shock, he had tears building up in the corners of his eyes.

"Sakura, please give just one more chance...please..."

That's when the first bomb fell.


	3. They Fell Like Rain

They Fell Like Rain, always and unending

They Fell Like Rain, always and unending.

Only for him, his touch, his smile.

I longed for him and loved for him. Maybe he would have loved me back, but he was too empty, too cold.

_He needs time to heal, _was what I thought, but I was so wrong. So very wrong.

They fell like rain, streaming down my cheek, clouding my eyes, distorting everything around me.

His face, voice and eyes still haunted me. His love was diminished, but still I dared to love him, dared to hope he would come to love me back...

They fell like rain, and he fell off a cliff.

Well I supposed he would have jumped. It was a decent drop, about forty feet or so, and many times I have wandered past wondering if I should do the same, to be near him again...

Tears fell like rain at the funeral, and the rain dropped from the sullen sky like frozen tears, almost to cold to be real.

That day was nothing but a blur of black and gray and pain.

Nothing but pain.

Everyday my tears fall like rain, into my glass, now almost full.

My gift to myself is that when the glass is full, I will never shed another tear.

I like to imagine that he's still watching us.

But I doubt it.

After all, who would give a rat's ass about some silly pick haired kunoichi who had the guts to feel just a little too much?


	4. Dark Cherries

I want someone provocative and talkative, is that so hard to ask for?

I mean really, girls these days are so...cheap. Well most of them are usually nice, and smart, but the clothes...ugh.

She's perfect, not flashy or anything, but giving of this aura of power. Beautiful, truly beautiful, but still to odd by some peoples standards to be as beautiful as she really is.

I saw her once, only once, walking out of a store. She was vibrant, alive. She laughed openly to a joke her blonde friend must have just said, and it made me want to laugh too.

I saw her once, just standing there being alive, and I knew I would never have someone as untouchable as that.

It was stupid, my hair, lackluster black; my eyes, a boring black as well, made me seem like I could blend in anywhere. I was mostly fit, I tended to work out a lot, but my skin was a stubborn pale, refusing to get a "healthy" tan.

Her eyes were a glowing green, like they were looking through what they stared at. Her hair was the oddest color, but still you could tell it was natural, it was on her arms too: pink.

Not hot pink, or shocking or anything; but pale, faded.

Gorgeous.

I couldn't help myself. As I made my way toward her, I felt a growing sense of apprehension that I might never get another chance with this girl if I didn't say something now.

"Naruto-kun!!" her voice was a lovely sound, medium range and still pure. A blond man who I had noticed sulking behind me, came forward at the sound f her voice. He was slightly taller than me, buff but still lean, tan and had bright blue eyes.

He was my exact opposite, he was her perfect match.

Two perfectly gorgeous, outlandish people. They deserved each other. I saw her start to wave at him, but then her eyes happened to lock with mine, and she was still.

We were both lost with each other, in each other, and it was good. And I felt alive, like I existed for once. She faltered in her wave, and then turned away, the boy reaching out for her hand. She held it until the end of the street, and let it go.

So, I let her go. Its all I could do...wasn't it?


	5. So Sorry

It was Sasuke's first time seeing his friend's band perform

It was Sasuke's first time seeing his friend's band perform. They were So Weird, and it only had the two members, Sakura and Naruto. Sakura did vocals and drums while Naruto did the keyboard and backup vocals. When he entered the club, he stuck to the shadows, not wanting any one to notice him. He was all in black, and avoided anyone's gaze. He saw Sakura walk on stage, and she earned a few wolf whistles from the male members of the audience. She was wearing a dark green sleeveless halter top with black short-shorts. The shirt was sparkly and matched the shades in her eyes. She walked up the mic without even acknowledging them.

"Welcome to Club Sheen. I hope you enjoy our performance. My name is Sakura Haruno, and my fellow band mate is Naruto Uzumaki, and we are So Weird. Our first song is called Hot n' Cold." She settled down at her drums and waited while Naruto set up his keyboards.

She started up the beat and Naruto kept up a pulse as she sang the first verse.

"_**You change your mind  
like a girl changes clothes  
Yeah you, PMS  
Like a bitch  
I would know**_

And you always think  
Always speak  
Cryptically

I should know  
That you're no good for me" She paused for a moment, and Sasuke realized the song...was about him. He had been acting progressively pissy at them recently, and she was probably still ticked off at him for blowing her off when they were younger. She started into the chorus and his suspicions were correct.

"_**Cause you're hot then you're cold  
You're yes then you're no  
You're in and you're out  
You're up and you're down  
You're wrong when it's right  
It's black and it's white  
We fight, we break up  
We kiss, we make up  
You, You don't really want to stay, no  
You, but you don't really want to go-o  
You're hot then you're cold  
You're yes then you're no  
You're in and you're out  
You're up and you're down**__**"**_

Naruto started into the second verse and immediately felt guilty.

"_**We used to be  
Just like twins  
So in sync  
The same energy  
Now's a dead battery  
Used to laugh bout nothing  
Now your plain boring**_

I should know that  
you're not gonna change_**" **_Sakura joined in for chorus and then sang alo9ne for the bridge, making the flutter of guilt in his stomach rise to his chest, and he couldn't look at her anymore.

"_**Cause you're hot then you're cold  
You're yes then you're no  
You're in and you're out  
You're up and you're down  
You're wrong when it's right  
It's black and it's white  
We fight, we break up  
We kiss, we make up  
You, You don't really want to stay, no  
but You, but you don't really want to go-o  
You're hot then you're cold  
You're yes then you're no  
You're in and you're out  
You're up and you're down**_

Someone call the doctor  
Got a case of a love bi-polar  
Stuck on a roller coaster  
Can't get off this ride_**" **_Naruto joined in one last time for the chorus. _****_

_**  
"You change your mind  
Like a girl changes clothes**_

Cause you're hot then you're cold  
You're yes then you're no  
You're in and you're out  
You're up and you're down  
You're wrong when it's right  
It's black and it's white  
We fight, we break up  
We kiss, we make up  
You, You don't really want to stay, no  
but You, but you don't really want to go-o  
You're hot then you're cold  
You're yes then you're no  
You're in and you're out  
You're up and you're down" Sasuke headed for the front of the stage as Sakura left the drum set and made her way to the front microphone, and Sasuke noticed how...coy she looked at that particular moment as Naruto started up the beat. Then she started singing, and he knew why.

"_This was never the way I planned  
Not my intention  
I got so brave, drink in hand  
Lost my discretion  
It's not what, I'm used to  
Just wanna try you on  
I'm curious for you  
Caught my attention_

I kissed a girl and I liked it  
The taste of her cherry chap stick  
I kissed a girl just to try it  
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it  
It felt so wrong  
It felt so right  
Don't mean I'm in love tonight  
I kissed a girl and I liked it  
I liked it

No, I don't even know your name  
It doesn't matter  
You're my experimental game  
Just human nature  
It's not what, good girls do  
Not how they should behave  
My head gets so confused  
Hard to obey

I kissed a girl and I liked it  
The taste of her cherry chap stick  
I kissed a girl just to try it  
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it  
It felt so wrong  
It felt so right  
Don't mean I'm in love tonight  
I kissed a girl and I liked it  
I liked it

Us girls we are so magical  
Soft skin, red lips, so kissable  
Hard to resist so touchable  
Too good to deny it  
Ain't no big deal, it's innocent

I kissed a girl and I liked it  
The taste of her cherry chap stick  
I kissed a girl just to try it  
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it  
It felt so wrong  
It felt so right  
Don't mean I'm in love tonight  
I kissed a girl and I liked it  
I liked it" 

The look on her face was pure glee, and kept changing back to the look with hooded lids and pouted lips painted a dark read, and Sasuke felt something tighten. His throat had completely closed off, his mouth dropped open. Her eyes caught his and she sent him a smirk as she finished the song.He quickly closed his mouth as she started the next song. It was pre recorded so Naruto could whistle along for background.

"**hope you hang yourself with your H&M scarf  
While jacking off listening to Mozart  
You bitch and moan about LA  
Wishing you were in the rain reading Hemingway  
You don't eat meat  
And drive electrical cars  
You're so indie rock it's almost an art  
You need SPF 45 just to stay alive**

You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like boys  
You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like…

You're so sad maybe you should buy a happy meal  
You're so skinny you should really Super Size the deal  
Secretly you're so amused  
That nobody understands you  
I'm so mean cause I cannot get you outta your head  
I'm so angry cause you'd rather MySpace instead  
I can't believe I fell in love with someone that wears more makeup than…

You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like boys  
You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like…

You walk around like you're oh so debonair  
You pull 'em down and there's really nothing there  
I wish you would just be real with me

You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like boys  
You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
Oh no no no no no no no  
You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like boys  
You're so gay and you don't even like boys  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like  
No you don't even like… PENIS" 

He suspected that at least part of the song was about him. He didn't have a My Space. After the concert he went to find Sakura, only to see her yelling at someone that looked suspiciously like him.

"Get the hell away from me Sai. You were here weren't you? Did you listen to the last song? It was about YOU! We are so OVER!! Now go hang out with your other poet friends that ALSO have tiny penises!"

The other man left defeated and Sasuke stepped out of the shadows.

"Sakura." She jumped.

"Sasuke! Oh gosh you totally scared me! Did you like the songs? I saw you during the second one!" Sasuke felt heat rise from the back of his neck as he recalled the look she had sent him, or had it been for ...Sai? Oh well, this burning nature in the back of his mind was sure to cool. As long as she didn't give him _those_ looks, and _he_ stayed away from her. She was too important to his…sanity to, not belong, share her happiness with someone else. He had been a horrible friend. He had denied the truth, he had looked away and stuck his head in the sand.

_**Songs used were I Kissed a girl, Hot and Cold, and Ur so Gay all by Katy Perry. I was really bored. that's the only reason I wrote this!!**_


	6. Ordinary Day

Just a day,

Just a day,  
Just an ordinary day.  
Just trying to get by.  
Just a boy,  
Just an ordinary boy.  
But he was looking to the sky.  
Sky.

He was so common here. His hair, his skin, his eyes. He was so _ordinary._ So plain.

Almost normal. I had watched him from a distance, because. well, he had the type of personality that drew you to him. He wasn't as ordinary as he seemed.

He got good grades.

He was good at sports.

He helped old ladies across the street.

He had no parents.

He had no friends.

He was the happiest person you could ever meet.

He spent every Tuesday night in the park reaching for the stars with his hands, grinning like a maniac.

On Wednesday afternoons, he would stand at the top of a huge cliff in the woods and glide down a line into his own secret world.

Sometimes it looked like he was flying.

Mondays were his normal days, school ramen, home.

To an empty house full of empty smiles.

Thursdays he plays tennis with the ferocity of a demon.

Fridays I followed him to his parent's graves and watched him sob against the smooth granite of his father's name.

He took his mother's last name.

He was full of dreams. He wanted to fly. He wanted to go where no one had ever been before.

And as he spoke, he spoke ordinary words  
although they did not feel  
for I felt what I had not felt before  
and you'd swear those words could heal.  
And as I looked up into those eyes  
His vision borrows mine.

We were put together on a project for English; we had to write our dreams and goals for our future. I really did get to know him. He prattled on about seeing the world and helping peop0-e. He said them like they were the simplest things to discuss—he had been thinking about what he wanted for so long. I wanted to help people too, I was already in several online courses for anatomy and biomedical sciences. I was going to med school no matter what anyone said.

I must had said it with a lot of conviction, because he looked into my eyes with his great big blue one and said like I was the best person in the whole world, "wow Sakura-chan! You're so amazing!"

Like he didn't even know how special he was.

And he said take my hand,  
Live while you can  
Don't you see your dreams lie right in the palm of your hand  
In the palm of your hand.

After school we walked around the park and talked more about our dreams. We both said for the English project.

But our eyes, our hearts and our hands clasped into each others said a whole different story.

Please come with me,  
See what I see.  
Touch the stars for time will not flee.  
Time will not flee.  
Can you see?

I followed him to his secret places, and I felt his hair in my fingers. I felt his hands in mine with our souls joined at our eyes. He told me so much stuff about myself I didn't even see. That I had been decided, no ifs about what I wanted in my life.

I wanted him.

I wanted to be a doctor.

I wanted to hold his hands and touch the stars.

Pretty simple.

Just a dream, just an ordinary dream.  
As I wake in bed  
And the boy, that ordinary boy  
Or was it all in my head?  
Did he asked if I would come along  
It all seemed so real.  
But as I looked to the door,  
I saw that boy standing there with a deal.

I woke with a start, my visions of flying past canyons with stars in his eyes jolted from my mind. He was on my porch, smile as brilliant as the sun. We made a promise. We would always wait for each other. We would reach our dreams and do everything together.

We would be in love.

But we already were.

And as he asked if I would come along  
I started to realize  
That everyday he finds  
Just what he's looking for,  
Like a shooting star he shines.

"Take my hand."

"Where are we going to go?"

"Anywhere we want."

We haven't looked back since.


	7. Found

_hello anyone reading this story thing. I'm glad you guys are reading, but reviews would be nice. ummm...i've strarted a new story called **Strange and Alone.** It doesn't really make sense until the later chapters so far, like chapter 4. It's supernatural, so there are other worlds and it's a Sasuke Sakura fiction. Hope you guys check it out!!_

**She's being** annoying as always. She's staring with her big green eyes with long dark lashes that don't match her hair but I know they're real and her soft shiny hair that got ruined by that stupid sound ninja—

Is it possible to be annoyed with your own inner monologue?

I can't get her out of my head. She won't leave me alone. I know she really cares. She just cares too much.

It's so annoying.

She works harder.

We grow closer.

We have picnic's by the river and laugh when Naruto gets bit by a dog.

We have ramen after every mission.

It's making me care.

It's making me want to stay.

But power is only given when there's a reason. So I'm going to use it.

-- _flip flab floo flee fly away little lady bug, carry me home..._

I watch him watch me.

He's subtle, but I notice.

I can do more push-ups than could. I can run father and faster in less time. I can sense when Kakashi watches me training after practice. I feel Sasuke wander by later on and watches ma from a tree.

He thinks I can't tell he's there.

His chakra's more dangerous now. More unstable.

He's going to leave.

And for all my strength, for all my hope and ...love, that dratted word, I can't make him stay.

So he leaves.

And I'm left to work harder all by myself again.

--

I came back. I did. I needed too.

That's what I tell myself.

That I need to restore my clan to its former glory.

I came...for her?

For her eyes and her tears and her smile?

Because she felt enough to care for me? When no one else really did?

Sakura. I found you. I found my reason for staying here.

--

"Sasuke. I'm glad your back."

"Sakura. Guess I found my reason. Let's go get some ramen."


	8. Stronger

Harder better faster stronger

Harder better faster stronger.

I guess you could call that my mantra. When I'm training, I always say them in my head. Thin king that I can go a little farther each day, go a little longer. Constantly push your self until you can't stand, until you fall down from exhaustion, chakra depletion, and hunger. Push yourself until the spots in front of your eyes cover you sight, until your breath becomes faint, and your hands are bloody.

What doesn't kill me only makes me stronger.

Leaving, pain, suffering from severed bonds. All his fault. He left, he severed the bond, and in return my bonds with everyone else became weakened. But it didn't kill me, only made me suffer a thousand physiological deaths. I'd like to think I can handle just about anything that comes my way.

I need you to hurry up now.

I can't wait much longer. Come home now, forget about revenge, forget about him, come home and be with me, be with your village. This pain is unbearable, and if you won't come back and end it, and I can, no. I WILL bring you back myself.

I can't get much stronger.

I have strength, I have the power to heal, I have beauty, I have 'confidence', but only on the outside. Inside I am as fragile as a new butterfly, still just put together, and easily breakable, but when my wings finally dry, I know I will have moved on. And I can finally forget my past, locked in a lonely cocoon for endless weeks.

I need you right now.

Since academy days, to genin days, to the chunin exams. We've been through so much. Just come back, because I can't wait much longer.

Harder better faster stronger.


	9. Wings 1

Running: freedom, bliss, breathing, air, wind, fly!

Chased: panic, fear, hope, can't breathe, can't breathe, can't breathe—

Stumble.

Fall.

Captured.

Torn wings.

Wind: sound, smell, lonely, dark, violent.

Sun: light, warm, good, happy.

Moon: run, run, run, escape, flee, dark, sightless, scared, justkeeprunning—

Can you catch wind? Can you clasp your hands around it and keep it with you? Canyou put it on your feet and run until your feet leave the ground in one glorious instant of flight?

I used to. I was small, carefree, brimming with magic.

No problems weighed me down at all.

Then I grew older, less sheltered.

Burdens

Worries

Stresses

Hopes

Goals

Future?

Now I don't know if I have a future. The night is dark, my legs are tired. My lungs heave with the effort of keeping him from catching me. My magic beckons to me to sear off his legs with a bolt of lightening, but my heart keeps the urge to maim and spill his blood at bay.

They have yet to understand that my magic cannot be taken. I won' let anyone take it, and it won't let anyone take me. It is a being. We live in a symbiotic style, each thing we do benefiting the other.

It is inside of me, sewn to my very existence.

I had escaped barely four hours ago, the sun was still in the sky, and the path was still calm and peaceful. The night made it seem like a whole new world, full of scratching branches and clutching thorns, roots begging me to fall. The moon lighted my enough to know that I was headed towards the river, the light reflected off of its turbulent surface.

Men feel threatened by my sisters and me. The magic takes root in some of their members, the rest resent and despise us. They call us unnatural because we are women with power. We hold the key to the universe, changing the fate that had awaited us before, enslavement by man to be dutiful wives and daughters—chess pieces in their big political game.

We refused. We destroyed them.

I trip on a root. I stand, bushes scratching at my skin and already tattered clothes. My panic rises, he is closer than before.

The cave of guidance is close, but it offers no protection for me.

My knees collapse, exhaustion setting in. I wait for the sweet bliss of unconsciousness. That way I can't get beaten for fighting all the way back. . My bliss never came.

"Sakura. " It was him. Fun. "You need to give us the power."

"I can't. It's already sewn into my very being. Removing it is like trying to separate the tin and copper in bronze, impossible."

"Nothing is impossible."

I look up, a dangerous move, as his own magic works mostly through illusions and hypnosis.

His eyes: blood, red, hate, power, control, fear, and loss.

His face: blank, tortured, pale, cold.

His task: kill me, his lover.

"Oh for the love of—!" he looked away, a scowl darkening his face." Sakura, listen to me! You escaped my grasp; you drowned when you crossed the river. You will dye your hair, change your name, and move to a new town. Most importantly, you will forget about me." His eyes filled with pain as they looked into mine. His expression was tortured.

"You _are_ my life! You are my wings!" He looked at me.

"You are my sun," he said. I felt torn between my heart, my pride and my ruthless magic all in one instant. I let out a frustrated scream. His eyes softened.

"Forgive me. I love you. Thank you."

My vision went black.

My name is Sakura Haruno. I have lost my wings.


	10. Wings 2

For my tenth chapter, I would like to thank i flame SUCKY stories for being my FIRST review (c'mon people, do you hate me

For my tenth chapter, I would like to thank **i flame SUCKY stories** for being my FIRST review (c'mon people, do you hate me?) and being eternally sweet about my anthology I work so hard on.

This chapter is a sequel to the previous on Wings1, and will be dubbed Wings2.

Dur.

I do not own Naruto.

Towns: comfort, neighbors, laughter, friends, stores.

Houses: all, imposing, empty, cold, excluding.

Home: warm, comforting, , just for me.

A new town, a new identity. My name was the only thing I remembered, but I kept my last name hidden, my hair I dyed, my personality became nonexistent. I stayed away from the people this time; though this time they tried to reach me.

Sasuke had erased my memory, so I didn't know about him, I didn't know about the Akatsuki. I didn't know that they still had Ino. I thought she was safe and sound in the little cottage by the stream.

Sasuke wiping my mind had done me more bad than good. They found me again in a few months, and I was carried away screaming like a banshee. I blasted their members with bolts of fire, and escaped with glee through the pandemonium.

Before the Akatsuki started plotting to wipe out my sisters and I once more, Ino and I had lived together in a warm little village where we were wise women, midwives, and seers. I knew all herbs for healing and Ino could tell you your future (she always had a knack for future relationships). We would defend the weak and bless their children and houses. Then a little boy was murdered. Because we were different, because the village was now filled with fear, our house was burned and we were run out of our village.

Fire: burning, heat, pain, runrunrun—

Woods: trees, duck, run, justkeeprunning—

Freedom: fresh air, fresh air, blue sky—

We escaped.

--

Another new town, a new hope for peace. We made friends right off, and told them of our powers. Instead of shunning us, they welcomed us and we spent the next few days healing the sick and ailing.

We birthed four babies in three months, and helped four more women that they were indeed pregnant.

We brought fertility to that valley; the crop yield was huge for such a small village.

We also brought the presence of Sasuke. He showed up wounded at our door, claiming a wild animal had attacked him. I had healed him using normal methods, not daring to use my Magic in front a stranger.

We became lovers, and we loved and our lives were full of passion that I can't write on this paper for it puts too much sorrow in my heart. God I miss him.

He had kept secrets from me. He was of the secret brotherhood, of the Akatsuki. The Men of the Magic. The Brotherhood. He was supposed to be my enemy, and my lover? He also lead his Brothers right to us. They kept me away from Ino. I was tortured to reveal secrets about the magic. I refused.

Lovers: wild, passion, joy, love—

Betrayal: heartache, pain, hurt, whywhywhy—

Hate: violence, anger, diediedie—

A long time agao, centuries ago, the Akatsuki and my Sisterhood had been one. The Circle represented us because like true love, we had no beginning and no end. We were lovers of and with the Magic.

They became envious of our ability to hold on to our Magic for all of our lifetimes. The truth is that they became greedy, using their Magic for power and control. The balance in their lives had been lost, so their power died.

They slaughtered us out of jealousy.

The Circle was broken.


	11. Wings 3

Sasuke had betrayed me

Sasuke had betrayed me. It jaded him to do it, but he still turned me in to his brothers. He turned me in to the Akatsuki.

He had his own world, his brothers, his Magic. He _had _me.

I didn't want him to lose the rest of his world just for me. I was, after all, only a part of it.

Hollow. Jaded. I knew that's what he felt after turning me in. he felt ashamed of himself for betraying me. He was world-weary. The Akatsuki was nice at first, but when I wouldn't give in to their demands, they started pressing for details about the Magic, and when I wouldn't respond, the result was my blood on the floor.

Sasuke usually came and healed me afterwards, but he would never look me in the eye.

I tried to control my Magic. I knew that I could never take on all of the Akatsuki with magic alone, and since they were big strapping men.

Eventually my Magic took control of my consciousness and attacked the Akatsuki. She somehow spared Sasuke and Shikamaru, the troublesome lazy member who had been very nice to me and had been against their move to kidnap me in the first place. He would be perfect for Ino, and he knew where she was. So when I was controlled my Magic, She took him with me.

Waking up in the middle of the forest covered with multiple wounds, burns and bruises and lying next to a strange _man_, kind of made me freak out.

Only a little.

Okay, a lot. It scared the crap out of me, so I had scrambled away screaming.

I had left Sasuke behind. I knew he would come after me again, this time as my true enemy.

!#&()!#&()!#&())(&#!

This all happened years ago, though I still remember it happening when I close my eyes.

I still smell his skin and the feel of his lips buried against my throat.

I still see his blood against my palms and the tears running down my face.

I can still hear the mad laughter of his brother and the wailing sobs of Ino as she buried Shikamaru's body against her chest.

All I can say was that they had found us. We had lived in peace for months after I stole Shikamaru away. We found Ino, and Sasuke tracked me down so that things almost had a sense of normalcy.

They had attacked us later, we were taken on my surprise. Ino and I were strong, but we were no match for more than a dozen fully trained Akatsuki. They slew Sasuke and Shikamaru.

Stabbed them both through the chest. For the betrayal, they said. I knew it was out of spite to us. To get us back for something that wasn't our fault.

It was unfair.

But when is life fair?

It has never been fair for my. With power comes responsibility. With anything good comes everything bad, and with absolute love there is absolute hate. Everything has a balance. So because I had, have the Magic, I am doomed to be unhappy.

It's just life, I guess.


	12. Blind

Her eyes saw everything. She saw everything about him. The way sweat would drip down his neck and down his back when he trained, the way he pushed himself harder than anyone else, the way his eyes looked when he was just determined to kill at least one more enemy ninja—

He was beautiful. He was nothing but faults and grace and coldicecold—

The way he looked without a shirt, so hot it made her insides melt.

She saw everything about him, but they way he looked at her.

* * *

He avoided everything.

He avoided the way her hair moved when she did her fleeting dance as she dodged, the way she stood tall after saving a patient. The way her eyes would follow his every move—

He avoided it. He avoided the way she could heal him and the idiot with perfect precision and still maintain almost all of her chakra. He didn't want to see the appreciative glances when he took off his shirt at training. He didn't want her hand in his. No. He didn't. So he avoided her all together.

* * *

Naruto knew everything. He saw her watch him, and how he avoided her. He saw his angry punches of frustration on the training dummy, and her tears behind her hands. He saw the craters in the ground after he blew her off, and the way his face had fallen when she yelled at his back claiming he was a stuck up loser who would die alone.

He watched him watch her.

He also saw the small dark-haired mouse of a girl follow him with a blush on her cheeks and determination in her eyes. He would watch her train in a whirl of dance moves and grace, both beautiful and deadly.

He was oblivious.

* * *

They were all so blind.


	13. The clichéd prompt chapter

The clichéd prompt chapter everyone loves to hate (or hates to love, because admit it, it is amazing)!

I asked my mom to write ten random words, nouns or adjectives and this is the first time reading and or writing them without a plan. So meh.

Multiple pairings, you can figure them out.

I do not own Naruto

**Brilliant**

She looked up into his brilliant blue eyes and sighed with satisfaction. All of her hard work had finally paid off, someone had finally recognized her, and she was strong enough to stand up to her family. She was with the man she wanted, and that's all that mattered.

**Boring**

The dance was atrocious. Sakura felt like she was a plain daisy amongst a bunch of lilies and orchids. The music pumped up through the floor from the gym below and she could smell the sweat of grinding bodies wafting up from the stair-way. She fingered the hem on her boring dress; it was so plain compared to the rest of her friend's dresses. All of the boys were dressed up so nice and he had looked so handsome—

It's a shame she didn't look better.

**Appaloosa** (what were you thinking mom?)

The horses reared, started by Sasuke's sudden movement.

"Horses. Why do we need them for this mission anyway?" Sakura swung up onto her blue spotted appaloosa with a practiced air about her.

"So that we can conserve our chakra. We can't pop a solider pill every three days, Sasuke." He sent a glare her way as his bay pranced nervously. He kept reaching for the reins, but he had dropped them early on when he became distracted by Naruto's antics at having received a small pony to ride.

Sasuke sent Sakura another glare.

"Stupid horses."

**Snort **

They were drunk, almost anyone could see that. Team seven was legal at last and not afraid to show it off to any passing jounin. They had just received the results of their exam, and now snorted with laughter at nothing at all. Sakura let out another unladylike grunt and then laid her head on the table and passed out. Naruto flirted with the nearest bartender, failing to notice that it was actually a very effeminate man, who did not appreciate the attention. Sasuke watched them both with an amused expression and a haze clouding over his dark eyes.

He eyed Sakura and threw her over his shoulder, stumbling from the combined weight and alcohol.

He snorted at her incoherent mumblings all the way to their apartment.

**Scratchy**

She sent a look of disapproval his way, her green eyes narrowing dangerously before shoving him back down onto the bed with a chakra-laced finger. She held him there as she secured the straps around his arms, making sure he was tied to the bed.

The great Kakashi now had to face his greatest fear: getting a check up for a sore throat. As a child he had dealt with them through tantrums and screams, now as an adult, he merely suffered through the flu and strep-throat by hiding in his tiny apartment alone.

With a medic-nin for a student though, that had all changed. She had dragged him here after hearing him speak.

"Sakura, now it's only a little scratchy, nothing a little cough-syrup couldn't cure—"

She shot him a withering glare, and forced his mask down. She had seen his face before, but now she squeezed his cheeks together until she could insert the thermometer. He held his lips firmly together,

"Unless you want it to be rectal Kakashi, you'd better do as I say!" he quickly complied.

**Purple**

I never noticed before just wow pretty her eyes were. She was so pretty looking everywhere else, I must've missed the wonderful shade of purple her eyes were. Her long dark hair, and her pink little mouth and just how beautiful she is, it made me miss her beautiful eyes. I am so oblivious.

**Blanket**

"Sakura. You need to get up now. We're on a mission." Sakura groaned in her sleeping bag and pulled her extra blanket out of her eyes. Using the reverse chakra, she blocked out her hearing for a maximum of twenty minutes. Just as she gave a contented sigh from the warmth and the silence, the blanket was ripped off of her eyes. She sat up with a growl, glaring at the Uchiha who had dared to interrupt her sleep. She needed eight hours, damn it!

She pulled the Uchiha down into the ground with a head-hunter jutsu that was so fast, not even Kakashi realized the unfortunate boy was buried up to his neck in tightly packed earth. Sakura gave him one last withering glare before snatching her blanket off of the ground and promptly fell into another slumber, after mumbling something alone the lines of, "I'm gonna get eight hours, bitches."

**Running**

Breathing. The sound of in-taking air and the force of exertion on a human body. The feel of feet pounding into the ground, pace quickening as his panic rose. Zoom in on his eyes, watch how they widen, see his breathing quicken. He is running faster, being chased. He feels feet collide with his back, and he's been trapped.

"Tag, you're it!" Moegi shouted with glee and Konohamaru, groaned and started the process all over again.

**Water**

She made sure no one followed her, because now that they've stopped, Ino new Chouji would be too busy catching up on his calorie intake and Shikamaru would watch clouds for the rest of the night.

So Ino knew it was her time to relax and get clean in the local stream. Asuma-sensei was busy setting up camp, and he knew her well enough to let her unwind in her own way.

She made her way towards the stream she knew was there. It was deeper than the last time she had been here, the week of rain swelling its banks like a gorged beast.

She went towards the inlet in the side, a good three feet deep and with enough of a current to keep the water clear and to rinse the soap away.

She stripped down and completely relaxed.

The water was made just for her.

**Reading**

Who loves books? Who _doesn't _love books?! Sakura loved books. Loved them. Trashy romance novels (those just fell short at Icha-Icha), medical volumes, fantasy, science-fiction. She loved anything. The one thing she did not like about books was that they were made out of paper. S

he despised the fact the weren't water proof, and therefore couldn't bathe or go to the beach with them. Or trust her stupid blonde friend to handle them without disaster happening. She had been reading Daylight Tragedies, a close cousin of Icha-Icha, but only slightly less dirty.

Naruto had sensed her blush next to him, ripped the book out of her hand, read the section he was on, and was on his way to Sasuke's apartment faster than you could say ramen. Her subsequent chasing had resulted in a ruined novel, a screaming boy in pain, an annoyed Uchiha and a very upset Sakura.

Thanks for reading! I will update next when I get a chance!


	14. Forgive

Forgiveness.

It's such a simple word. Eleven easy letters, three plain syllables. The action for this simple word, however, is not so easy. To forgive someone of hurting you, of making you cry and bleed and damn it, _hope, _that is not easy at all.

You struggle with your inner conflicts, of weighing the good and bad of the persons actions in you mind and deciding from there. With this one person, although, I find myself giving in to my heart more often than o should, because no matter how many times he hurts me, no matter how many times I cry because he's gone, I'm still going to forgive him.

And that just hurts me even more, that my common sense can see what I'm doing and still let me dig my grave even deeper.

I love Sasuke, so that's why I would do anything for him.

"Sakura. I'm going back you know." It was a statement from him that I knew was coming, and I still couldn't shield my heart from the blow. My windpipe started tightening. He jumped off of the ruined rooftop, and gave Konoha a glance. The village was almost destroyed, many fires still running rampant.

"You have already killed your brother though, why would you leave?" My q2uestion brought his eyes to mine, and I saw nothing in them but emptiness. He felt no love, no joy, or any sadness.

He was hollow. He had no emotions left after his twisted childhood ripped everything away from him. He killed his brother, whom he loved, and it destroyed him even more.

He was gone. Nothing I could do would ever bring him back from the coldness he sought.

These thoughts brought tears streaming down my cheeks, but only for a moment., because a moment later, I captured his lips in mine in a movement you couldn't see. He didn't move, he didn't even blink.

"I love you Sasuke-kun, but ….go. I know you need to." He shot me a glance, full of confusion, and he patted my arm awkwardly. The touch of affection meant more to me than all the smiles and declarations of love in the world, it meant he was at least, still human.

I could forgive him now.


	15. what is this

I sat on top of my sleeping mat, my small pillow folded into my arms

I sat on top of my sleeping mat, my small pillow folded into my arms. I could feel my eyes glazing over from the glow of the fire and its soothing heat. It was my first two person mission, and although I wasn't new to ANBU, I was still nervous.

I collapsed sideways unto my mat, and pulled my worn blanket over my head. I sent out my chakra to search for any life-forms with chakra. I was waiting for my partner to catch up, as we had split up in order to question more suspects about the recent assassination of the beloved daimyo. I had headed west when the main road split, and he had went straight, to the south.

It was still unnerving working with him, although he changed sides at the last minute, it had taken all of Naruto's and my persuasion to help him stop Pein from destroying Konoha. That had been four years ago.

He loomed out of the darkness, but his sudden coming hadn't startled me, I had known he was there. He settled his pack onto the ground on the opposite side of the fire than my bed, if you could call it that, and he got ready for sleep.

"I'll take the first watch." I said. He glanced up and nodded before slipping under his dark blanket. I cast a jutsu over our campsite that stopped our chakra from being sensed. I did another jutsu that stopped us from being heard, seen and smelled.

I sat watching Sasuke breathe for roughly two hours, just staying calm and thinking about the next part of our mission.

I woke Sasuke soon after, and I collapsed neatly unto my mat, not bothering to pull up my blanket since the fire was so warm.

I awoke with the blanket tucked under my arm, and Sasuke staring at me with a tiny hint of amusement in his eyes. We hurried on; our target's name was Hamada Hayato, a known dealer in the black market, known for his cunning ways and sharp tongue.

The day was uneventful, except Sasuke decided to pass me once. He just took an extra big jump on the branch we were on. I checked for hostile chakras, but there was only one heading away from us in the opposite direction. I shot a questioning glance at him, but he dismissed it with a shrug. I felt a twinge of annoyance at his indifference, but I remembered that that was just the way he was.

We got much closer to the small village where Hayato's base was hidden. We camped again for the night, and Sasuke threw me his blanket.

"I'll take the first watch this time, and cover up, you started shivering last night." He started the fire and leaned against a tree. I shifted when I felt his eyes on my back. I slipped into a fitful sleep.

I had dreams, dreams of endless running and dark claws reaching for me, and scariest of all, being trapped, and not being able to do anything about it. The taunting faces of dark men turned into cruel children all laughing at me, and suddenly everything was huge, and I was so small.

I awoke with a panicked gasp, sweat dripping off of my chin, soaking my uniform. Sasuke was kneeling next to me, his hand on my shoulder from shaking me awake. His eyes had a hint of confusion and worry in them, but I shook it off. There was just no way.

Shaking my head again, I sat up and put another log on the fire. Then, restless, the memory of my dreams still haunting me, I headed towards the stream near the camp.

The moon was full, and the still water of the brook reflected it perfectly. My face looked drawn and lined with worry. I sighed at my reflection and pooled water into my hands. I washed my face and the back of my neck before deciding to just take a quick bath. I slipped out of my ANBU uniform and relaxed in the chilled water.

I let my breath go, glad to be able to let go for a moment. I heard a log snap back at the fire, so I decided to dry off and head back.

I can't believe I'm still a teenager. I'm only nineteen and I've been through so much, battling for my life and my loved ones more times than I can count. I had fought and screamed and cried too many times in the past couple of months as well. Tsunade-Shishou was old; this was not disguised by her henge too much.

She was old, and tired. The war took a lot out of her, Pein destroying too much of Konoha to quickly. It had been horrible, Naruto not being able to get back in time, he was almost too late, and Danzou paid the price all too well.

Sasuke-k—

Sasuke. Just Sasuke. Do I need to explain how much trouble he's been to me? He's verbally abused me and made me emotionally unstable, and Naruto expected me to welcome him back with open arms. I did welcome him back, but I did it with a closed fist.

He I beat the crap out of him as soon as he was out of the makeshift hospital, since the first one had been destroyed by Pein. Then I healed him, and verbally abused him until I had nothing left to say. After that, things had gone almost back to normal, as in, before the 'Sasuke-abandoned-us-all-to-die-scared-and-alone' era, when we were still young innocent genin.

I finished drying off, and started back towards the fire, and saw that Sasuke was curled up next to the fire. It amused me to see his mouth hanging open slightly and a small strand of saliva reaching towards the ground. He was becoming more like Naruto everyday.

I pulled his blanket up farther towards his chest, when his eyes snapped open and he grabbed my hand with his large, callused one. I started to pull away from reflexes, but he pulled me down into a kneeling position as he started to sit up.

"Sakura, I think we need to talk a little more about the plan before we get any closer Hayato's base. He's a dangerous man, and he's bound to have some secrets up his sleeve." I glared at Sasuke as I sat on my heels.

"Do you think I don't know that? I'm not in ANBU for nothing. I looked this guy up a lot before you were even chosen as my partner, and I've memorized his information from the Bingo Book." I glanced away from him disdainfully, angry that he'd underestimated my abilities. _Again. _

"Sakura." He said, his voice was stern, but I refused to look at him. I wanted to act childish. I had a bad dream, I haven't been getting enough sleep, and I've only bathed twice in five days, I was not a happy camper. He sighed. "Well, if you know so much about him, fill me in." I grinned, knowing I had won.

"He's roughly 5'11" or 6'; he has light brown hair and dark brown eyes. He's not physically strong, and his estimated weight is around 190, so I'm figuring that he isn't very capable in the taijutsu area. His very intelligent, his IQ is almost as big as Shikamaru's. He's very average, and very wealthy, he most likely has a bunch of hired thugs to guard his treasure hoard of women and gold. Tsunade also said that he had intercepted some important scrolls with information on Grass. She also told us to rescue the women if we can and take as much gold as we can carry without being killed or seriously injured. This would also be a lot easier if we had more people on our team, but since we don't, we can always make some shadow clones. Knowing naruto has never been so useful." I said this all very quickly, and I'm surprised Sasuke's jaw wasn't on the floor from shock. Instead he just sent me a look of impressed amazement, and smirked a little.

"Well then, let's get started on what we know about his little lair…"


	16. flowers

Ino looked again at her mother's laptop before turning back to the green house. She was helping sakura research the meaning of flowers. She wanted to get something for Sasuke that was simple but told volumes if he chose to look up the meanings.

She thought about Petunias, anger and resentment, but then thought against it. Sakura had gotten over her bitterness long ago. Ino glanced back at the page, mad at her self for not having a printer of being able to memorize, and glanced at the Rose section.

Pink and white. They stood for 'I love you still and always will'. They sounded perfect. She selected a perfect White Rose; edges kissed with a blushing of pink, and placed it at her focal point. Turbose made a good secondary flower, with its small white blossoms matching the white of the rose. Turbose meant 'dangerous pleasures' which amused her as she thought of Sasuke. She cut the stems to the perfect height, just shorter than the rose, and set them down next to the vase.

She wandered down the long hallway in the greenhouse, ducking under giant ferns and hanging catkins. She stopped suddenly eyes on three beautiful jonquils. The tiny daffodil copycats had a misting of dew on them, and glowed a blinding white in the morning sun. She remembered what jonquils stood for, and she always thought that it had been a little sad. They stood for violent sympathy and desire, love me, and affection returned. These would be another perfect flower for Sasuke's bouquet.

She mused again over how he was in the hospital. Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto were on a mission and Sakura had stopped to heal Naruto, leaving her back unguarded. Sasuke had covered both of the, but ended up being on the receiving end of an enemy shinobi's sword. It wasn't fatal, but the damage was enough to keep in the hospital for a week at least.

Sasuke's birthday was unfortunately in a few days, and he was still in his hospital bed, glaring out the window when anyone other than Naruto or Sakura came to see him.

She settled back to the bouquet. She gathered some absinthe, also known as Wormwood, to use as leafy greens in the bouquet, to add some more color and dimension. Absinthe also had medicinal properties and emitted and herby sage odor from its flowers. It also had a meaning, separation and torment of love.

When Sakura came for the bouquet, she just hoped that she wouldn't look up the meaning of the names.

--

I picked up Sasuke's bouquet today. I know that he's aloof and doesn't really like to show affection, but I hope that he'll at least thank me for them.

I wanted to get him something useful too, so I bought him a tiny chakra tracker. He could slip it unto a target after imbedding it with his own chakra. It's reusable, and something I came up with on my own. It's tiny, and concealable. I made it into a silver claw earring, but it could be turned into a necklace.

I decided to look up the meanings behind the flowers in his bouquet, knowing he would be to oblivious to know flowers even _had _meanings. I felt an ache in my chest as I looked up the names, their meanings spinning in my mind. If Sasuke found out what they meant, he would think I was crazy, or that I hadn't meant to put them together like this. The bouquet _was_ very beautiful, clashing with all of its colors, but it still seemed to go together. It suited the way our relationship was.

--

I'm not even sure what we are.


	17. The Game of Life

* * *

"For of all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these; 'It might have been'"

* * *

Pairing: Sasuke and Sakura

_The Game of Life. _

The Game of Life is not owned by me, neither in Naruto.

* * *

_We were sitting there, bored out of our minds, Naruto's thoughts only of ramen and ways to annoy Sasuke. We sat at the dinning room table, surrounded by an uncomfortably awkward wall of silence. I glanced at the game board, only mildly thrilled that I was in the lead, so I was ahead in Life, big deal. I had already gotten my salary, a decent $70,000 a year, and just started choosing a house. _

_Sasuke held out the three cards to choose from, I grabbed the second one, praying for the farm house of Victorian, to see the split-level. I let out an outraged gasp, a pout-y glare aimed at Sasuke while still trying not to ogle him. He leaned back and sighed, either amused or irritated, I couldn't tell. _

* * *

Naruto and Sasuke are practically brothers; they live together, fight all the time, have some similar interests, but for the most part, brawled continuously over trivial matters on the living room floor whenever I came over.

Naruto is my best friend, well, my best guy friend anyway. My friend Hinata totally likes him, but she's just way to shy to do anything about it. Sasuke is almost three years older than me; he's tall and lanky, almost awkward, with a long nose and hair flying out from all over his head. His bangs were long, and almost hid his eyes_. _

* * *

_He stared at me from across the table, eyes burning me. _

* * *

Ever since I was little, still in elementary school when he was practically a freshman, I practically drooled after him. I never told anyone, and had always been good at hiding who I was crushing on from my friends, my prying family. Even a hyper eleven-year-old Naruto couldn't get me to reveal my secrets.

They usually ended in disaster. Any boy I had _ever_ told him I liked him, had always been _awful_ to deal with after, usually hurting me in the process. So I stopped blabbing about cute boys and put on my big girl panties and dealt with it.

I had always liked Sasuke, but he was always unapproachable. That is until my sophomore year, when he was visiting Naruto and I for a quick break from college life.

* * *

_Naruto got up again to make more ramen, Sasuke and I alone at the table, I leant forward, letting my head be held up by my hands. I sent Sasuke a playful smirk, pink hair sliding into my eyes. I had always hated the dratted curly stuff. Tangled and frizzed all over the place. I blew the hair from my eyes._

"_Is there anything else we can _do_?" I asked Sasuke, stressing the last word. It was time to get what I wanted. I started humming The Clash under my breath, watching his eyes light up in excitement. _

"_Well this is something I've always wanted to show you...in my room." I felt a victorious smile pull into existence on my face, and followed Sasuke into his room at the end of the hall, Naruto blissfully unaware. _

_Sasuke initiated the kiss first, pulling his lips against mine. Never having done this before, I grabbed unto the front of his shirt and pressing harder into him. My hands roamed forcefully across his chest, a deep chuckle reverberating in the back of his throat. _

_I smiled into the kiss, feeling sweetness ebb back into it for a full minute. We separated for air. I sated into his eyes, his lips swollen and cheeks pink. I waited a full breath before I slammed him into the wall, his breath expelled from his body..._

* * *

"_Sakura?" my head slammed downward in an instant, my eyes spinning before focusing on Sasuke's black ones. "You fell asleep again it's your turn." _

_I wiped the drool from my mouth, before spinning the wheel. Stupid daydreams, they always end before the good part. _

_Sasuke's knee bumped into mine and our eyes met. This time, the world froze, and I held my breath waiting for me to land on 'get married'. _

* * *

This one-shot is loosely based off of real life, my best friend's older brother was involved in a dream of mine, but it wasn't nearly as detailed as this is. Plus, I'm not Sakura, and my friends' brother never came back for a visit from college.

Darn.


	18. my boys

I have always had my boys. They've always been there for me, I've always been there for them. We're the friends that haven't grown apart a single iota since leaving college. We work within three blocks from each other, each of us doing what we're the best at and what we love the most.

My first boy is made out of fire. He's loud and passionate and burns with the heat and intensity of a man who hasn't a single doubt about his beliefs. He's golden and orange with his hair and his obnoxious fashion sense.

My second boy is like ice. He's cold and dark, like winter. He has a frosty attitude and a smile that pulls chills up my spine. He's detached from society and lonely. His eyes are dark from his past, with a gleam for his future.

I've never really known what exactly I loved more, winter or summer. I've always loved winter for its delicate beauty, its sparkles and softness, its cool points and jagged ice.

I've always loved summer though too, and the warmth of the sun on my back and the heat of the day, the cicadas buzzing in the trees to the sweat trickling down my neck.

I love both of my boys, and they love each other too. We all love each other, and I feel it's better this way than with me finally choosing one.

___

just a note: i won't be updating again until i get some reviews. This anthology has to be my best work EVER, so please exscuse this.

just review okay?


	19. beat, just move it

The pounding of the drums, rhythm rocking me to the core, bass chords making my head bang with the beat, my feet moving and legs flailing.

I must look ridiculous, but my eyes are closed and I feel this _feeling_ in my chest of the utmost euphoria, and I move even more crazily.

The guitar and keyboard rock up and down, and I begin to jump, banging my head in time to the music.

I shake my hips and spin a circle.

_No they never miss a beat. Beat beat beat beat…_

My skinny jeans blend into the dark dance floor, and my black vest sticks to my thin t-shirt as I sweat the DJ. I misplace my feet, and slam into a solid wall, that really is only a friend from school. I scream a hello in his general direction before I continue dancing. Boys try to sidle up to me, and they attempt to chat me up or use a line, but I just keep moving my body, enjoy my love of the music to it's fullest. It didn't matter the genre, style artist or era, music was music, and it made up my soul. I wouldn't let any boy get in the way.


	20. Bomb Dropped 2

I had to get away. The pressure he as putting on me, it was just too hard. I couldn't handle being around him after so long.

It had been _six_ years.

Six _years._

And now he wanted back in my life like he had never left and had kissed me until I saw stars and—

I left him, for once. I put my hands in the correct seal and teleported to a different part of the ruins, escaping his grasp and anguished tears. I just wanted to help people. I just wanted to be able to save lives and keep families from falling apart.

Mine split apart after my mother found out that I had been helping enemy soldiers.

Don't get me wrong, I love my country. I just wanted to help someone who needed it.

---

She left, tears still held in her perfect eyes. She had promised to love me forever, but just like the treaty between the two countries, it just stopped working.

I guess it didn't help that I knocked her out and abandoned our country. And as my feet were shocked by the first explosion, the rest of me as too saddened to find shelter.

I needed to find her again.

---

I found the medic tent, the roof a deep blood color, and surrounded by dozens of wounded people, a small fraction already treated. I dove in and found the nearest medic.

"Hello. I would like to help" was all I said before he looked up and embraced me tightly.

"Sakura-ch—. I mean Sakura. It's so nice to see you again after all these years." I looked into his warm brown eyes, and took in his brown ponytail before I latched myself to him.

"SHIKAMARU-KUN!!!" I looked back into his face, noticing the scar that rang across the bridge of his nose. I giggled, "You look like Iruka-sensei!"

He frowned slightly, as he noticed the tears stains on my cheeks. "What happened?"

"I saw Sasuke again." He stared at me, but didn't say anything. I sighed. "He was injured, and I hadn't realized it was him until after I healed him. I tried to run away but he k—tried to stop me. I got away eventually."

Shikamaru shook his head, as if to remove his thoughts from his head.

"Sakura, this war is getting worse. There have been 400 casualties in this sector alone today. There are eight more sectors just like this one that are just as bad or worse. We need to find more people willing to train to become medics or nurs—"

An a screaming wail ripped through the air, and less that a couple seconds later, the 10 Kilo bomb detonated less that 400 meters away. Everyone able ducked for cover, and all the patients started coughing as dust clogged the air. Pure white sheets turned a dusty gray and gritty. Refugees hushed their crying children, the youngest parents faces already lined heavily, families torn by the ravages of war. Sakura surveyed the scene with hate and pity in her eyes.

"Why did this war have to start in the first place? That little boy could still have his leg, that woman could still have a husband. That family could still have a home. Millions of lives are ruined, and for what? A gold mine that's so tiny it could barely turn out eighty rings?! Pointless!"

She continued mumbling to herself as she closed the flaps to the tent, and beating the sheets clean that had been dirtied by dust.

---

Sasuke stumbled towards the safe haven that his disoriented eyes could just make out. Had he been coherent, he would've realized that the Red-Cross Tent was the most logical place Sakura would go, but all he could concentrate on was not passing out, and managed to topple inside the tent before his vision went black, and his hearing faded from fuzzy, to silence.

He awoke, stiff, bandaged tightly, and with a throbbing head. The lights were intense to his overly sensitive eyes, although it was just night, and the sounds of flack and shells were far in the distance.

Sakura sat next to him, carving an apple into slices, and placing them into a large bucket. Every couple slices she placed one unto a different plate, and then set a full one on his bed side table. He stirred at last, and struggled to reach it but his arm was wrapped tightly to his chest, and couldn't feel his left arm at all.

He saw Sakura roll her eyes, and stabbed an apple slice with a fork and held it in front of his lips. They fought a silent battle for dominance.

Pointed stare.

Glare.

Eye roll.

_Glare. _

Glare.

_**GLARE. **_

Sigh.

She gave a smug smirk (alliteration!) and waited for him to open his mouth. She popped the slice into his mouth whole, and he struggled with it for several seconds. She gave a silent snicker (another one, I'm on a role!) and he shot her the Look of Death. She smiled, remembering a time when they acted like this everyday, when the sun shone yellow everyday, the sky wasn't gray and dusty, and the trees were green instead of black and dead. She glanced out of the now open flap tent, and sighed at the remnants of the sunset.

She held Sasuke's gaze with eyes filled with sorrow, for th loss of their friendship, the loss of their alliance, and the loss of so many lives.

Everything was broken.


	21. unrequited

Okay guys! sorry about the long update, but I've been busy with family, finals and going to Borders everyday during break so, yeah....

Anyway, this one should be a little different. Its sasusaku, and written completely in dialogue. I used some quotes too; see if you can recognize them, since I couldn't find authors for them.

---

"Love is when you shed a tear and still want him, it's when he ignores you and you still love him, it's when he loves another girl but you still smile and say I'm happy for you, when all you really do is cry."

---

"Well this is it."

"Yep. Are you going to have a graduation party?"

"I think so."

"Who do you think would come?"

"Definitely Ino, maybe Shikamaru and Neji..."

"Ino..."

"Why don't you like her so much? She's never done anything to you!"

"It's nothing. I'm just....never mind."

"No, tell me. What is it?'

"I...Do you think our age difference is really big?"

"Age difference? No, but maturity definitely."

"Ha-Ha. Very funny."

"Will you just tell me?!"

"I...I think....I think that..."

"Yes?"

"I don't want to tell. You won't be my friend anymore. And I couldn't stand it."

"I'll always be your friend Sakura."

"Somehow I doubt it."

"Hey don't look so down. Please tell me?"

"I remember in freshmen year I met you. You were nice and charming. You treated me like a person, and not like how everyone else treated me, like I was weird or like I didn't have any feelings. You gave me hugs and smiles and we could talk about everything. When I saw you at school my heart would catch in my throat and...and my eyes would cloud over with black and my head would spin. You were like a disease. My every thought was. 'Will I see Sasuke today? Will he notice if I blush? Don't act like a fan girl!' I was terrified you would hate me for liking you. Then this year, everything got so complicated. My friends said you were bad news, since you have that reputation of leading girls on, at least with my friends. I've heard you disclaim that more than once. I fell in love with you..."

"Hey, don't cry..."

"Wait! And...and then you started going out with Ino, and it felt like I was dying. You kept saying it wasn't serious, but I see the way she looks at you. Every time I saw you with her, it felt ice in my chest, like a dagger. It still hurts. and I think the most horrible, sad thing about this is that, that you may not love me today, tomorrow, or ever, but I will love you until it kills me, and, even then, you'll be in my heart. I'll still always love you."

"Sakura..." "

Well, go one call me a fan girl, call me horrible names and don't be my friend anymore, it would be so much easier if you weren't so nice to me."

"I couldn't do that to you. You're still my friend. I just...I just don't love you the same way you love me. I'm sorry" *sharp gasp* "It's okay, I'd forgiven you long ago."

"I'm so sorry...for any pain I ever put you in."

"If I never met you, I wouldn't like you. If I didn't like you, I wouldn't love you. If I didn't love you, I wouldn't miss you. But I did, I do, and I will. I'll be at your party when you have it."

---

says the girl who speaks from experience. I'm am tearing up as I write this. Sad, ne?


	22. Posting update

I'm not posting anymore until I get a couple reviews, m'kay?

Oh, here's' a sneak peek for the next chapter as incentive.

_Everyone in the clinic was staring at me. Well, it wasn't anything new, given my age, but it got unsettling after a while. _

_They weren't all staring at my face either, they were staring at my bloated stomach. Ayt nineteen I made a bad decision. Two years later that bad decision left me. This time I found the right decision and let him make a bad one. Now I was 21, with the love of my life, engaged and pregnant. _

_I sure hope this turns out well. _

so, i'll post again after i get a couple of reviews. This is just me being selfish, but i think i deserve a couple, ne?

**_second edit!!!!!_**

**after i get some reviews, I'll turn that crappy last chapter into something awesome. just to let you know. ^^**


	23. Dear Journalsan

Hey all! so I've been kind of busy lately, and thank you for your reviews. Even though I haven't updated in awhile, doesn't mean you should give me the cold shoulder.

*Hasn't gotten a review since November of last year*

I write only for you guys. I do it all for you, so...

Officially, this story will be marked as complete, if I don't get any reviews for some of my chapters.

I don't want to come off as harsh, I just don't want to keep getting my hopes dashed against the rocks every time I check my email.

This chapter came out of nowhere by the way.

Hope you all enjoy it.

PLEASE REVIEW!!

----

Journal-san:

So I've been thinking a lot lately. I've been feeling down, and out-for-the-count. Everyday has been exactly the same.

Every.

Single.

Day.

It's high school, though, and I guess that's kind of expected to be the case, but my life has become duller than usual.

I think the biggest change in my life is that I'm no longer in love with Neji.

See, ever since freshman year, I've had this ridiculously huge crush on Hyuuga Neji. He was a junior then, and I was easy prey for anyone with a kind word and a nice smile.

He didn't notice the fact I liked him though. I kept it secret, I kept id hidden.

Because, usually, when a guy finds out I like them, they tend to ignore me, or hate me. It never ends well, in any case.

So for all of freshman year, and half of this year, I followed his every move. I laughed and I smiled when he talked to me, I skipped down the hallway when he gave me a hug. He was my best friend, and slowly, over the first months of freshman year, I fell in love with every single thing he did.

Despite his faults.

Despite the fact he was dating Tenten.

Despite the fact she was my best friend. See, I cared more about his feelings, and the fact that she really liked him too, than I cared about my own. I've always been like that though.

It really hurt too, seeing him walking in the hallways hand in hand, kissing against her locker, eating lunch in the same chair.

Then he broke up with her, and she was so hurt. She was crying every time I saw her for the next week. She still had it really bad, but, Hell, so did I.

That's when I realized that Hyuuga Neji was an asshole who only cared about himself. I wasn't angry with him about that though, I was disappointed.

He knew I was too.

Slowly, during sophomore year, we slowly stopped being such close friends. He started dating another girl, whom Tenten and I dubbed The Leech, since she is always attached to his face.

I really miss him though.

Even if he is an asshole.

Even if h hurt Tenten.

Even if he has a girlfriend.

Even if I don't love him the way I used too.

I still think about him. More often than not though, it's about back when we were so close, when we best friends, when he was so nice.

I miss being in love with him, because now I don't know what I'm supposed to be feeling.

Right now, all I feel is empty.

--Haruno Sakura, graduating class of 2011.

----

Well, there you have it. The "pregnant" one that I gave a sneak peek of will be posted later, I haven't written anything for it, yet.

P L E A S E R E V I E W! ! ! ! !


	24. GobbleDeGook

Don't say another word. Don't you dare. I don't want to hear it, I can't hear it, _I won't I won't I won't—_

Your going to leave me again, aren't you? You're going to be sensitive to my feelings and try to let me down gently, and it's going to hurt so bad, hurt so much and I don't want to listen.

I can't, and I _refuse_ to watch you leave, your back turned on me, on us, again and…for all your promises, all your declarations of love, it isn't enough to keep you here.

You may love me, but it can't, I can't, make you stay.

And it kills me every time you clench your fist when his name is mentioned, when you're thinking all alone, when we're on a date, for goodness' sake.

You can't stop thinking about him, _almost_ just like me. I couldn't stop either. I suppose he does that to people, making them like him, love him, befriend him, and them hurting them so much.

It's just such a Sasuke thing. He does it unconsciously I'm sure; he probably can't wrap his mind around the fact that people might actually _care_ about him. Because he was so used to being hurt by the people he admired, loved, and wanted to protect.

I can at least understand that part of his thinking I guess, he always had a way of making me cry for him, even when I didn't want to. God, I wanted him so bad back then, I loved him with everything in me, despite everything.

Despite the fact he treated me like I was worthless, even more "worthless" than you used to be, supposedly. I know now that all you need was a direction to focus all your potential. For all the pain he's caused this past decade, he's the best thing to happen to any of us.

He taught you to never give up in people, to always believe in second chances. He taught me to toughen up for once, to suck it up, put on my big girl panties, and deal with it instead of crying me girly little eyes out.

But don't leave me Naruto, because seeing that look in your beautiful blue eyes, so big and so hopeful, leaves me hopeless, he'll come back on his own, I know him almost as well as I know you, sweetheart, darling Naruto-kun.

So don't leave me behind. Even after this, everything that's happened, after killing Pein and rebuilding Konoha, and losing Hinata, I've stayed by your side.

Team seven will always be, forever. Even if it takes Sasuke fifty years to realize it, we'll always be connected. Even after all this you still want to chase him down?

Take me with you. I may want children now, Hell; I'm twenty-three dearie. I want marriage and children. Now. For you I'd wait though. I'd wait forever for you.


End file.
